Back in 1990, Michael Jordan revealed the scary details of the time he almost suffocated by falling behind the bed as a baby. During an interview with The Chicago Tribune, Jordan and his parents – Deloris and James – spoke about the health issues that the NBA legend had to face as a baby. Apart from Deloris fearing MJ being a miscarriage, the latter also had to deal with constant nosebleeds until the age of 5.
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Despite being five months pregnant with Michael Jordan, Deloris was exerting herself by constantly working and raising three children. During the same time, her mother passed unexpectedly, which caused Deloris to suffer from a lot of strain. The family doctor then revealed the potential of a miscarriage under such duress. However, fortunately, the baby was unharmed.
“’I always said that Michael`s birth was like a sign. I lost my mother unexpectedly while carrying Michael, and he was my godsend,” said Deloris.
While the Jordans escaped a massive tragedy, their son was born with a nosebleeding issue. The constant nosebleeds gave Michael a tough time till the age of 5 before it stopped all of a sudden. “He was born with a nosebleed... He`d have nosebleeds for no reason until he was 5, and then they just stopped,” James Jordan said.
This same health problem could’ve potentially been extremely harmful for Mike. After revealing that he still suffered nosebleeds frequently, Jordan recounted a frightening tale from his childhood. As a baby, he nearly suffocated after falling behind his bed.
“My nose still bleeds easily,” Jordan told The Tribune. “That`s one story my mom never told me. The only thing my mom told me was the time when I fell behind the bed as a baby and almost suffocated.”
Experiencing several near-death moments, Michael Jordan had a traumatic childhood with some forgettable incidents. Apart from being nearly electrocuted when he was two years old, Jordan also witnessed one of his closest friends losing his life through drowning. Going through these disturbing moments played a huge role in developing MJ’s personality. The fact that he was able to achieve so much success sheds light on Michael’s resilient character.
Michael Jordan almost chopped off his toe at the age of 5
Almost chopping his toe off was one of the several traumatic experiences from Michael Jordan’s childhood. Back in 1989, during an appearance on Late Night with David Letterman, the superstar revealed the horrific details of an incident that occurred when he was five years old.
Despite his parents’ warning, Mike was using an axe to chop “little bits and pieces of wood”. While doing so, Jordan was not careful. As a result, the five-year-old missed the wood and “cut half of his big toe”.
“My parents told me not to mess with the axe. I don’t have any shoes on. So I’m chopping little bits and pieces of wood and being hard-headed and I accidentally missed the wood and cut half of my big toe,” MJ told David Letterman.
MJ’s parents were quick to act upon the incident by taking him to the neighborhood doctor. Jordan was healed by having kerosene spread all over the injured toe.
From having his toes nearly chopped off to becoming one the greatest basketball players ever, Michael Jordan has some of the most inspiring tales.
